Mexican Sunflowers, Tithonia rotundifolia

Mexican Sunflowers, Tithonia rotundifolia

Sunflowers...

Red and yellow for July.

While I am hard at work on our Garden Blogger Bloom Post for July, I thought I would share these cheery flowers with you...

Have You Seen the New Butterfly Snapdragons?...

A "Butterfly" or "Open-faced" Snapdragon: Antirrhinum majus 'Trumpet Tangerine'

I first noticed these pretty new snapdragon varieties when they were popular on Pinterest: white snapdragon, 'Le Bella'.  What a beauty! So when were attended the annual Spring Flower Show at Phipps Conservatory again this year, I ran to get a closer look at this new snapdragon.

Stan Hywet's Great Garden ~ Part 2: The Cutting Garden

The Cutting Garden in the three acre Great Garden at Stan Hywet, Akron, Ohio

Visiting Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens in August finds the Cutting Garden full to bursting with the classic annuals of summer: cosmos, zinnias, statice, cleome, dahlias and lisianthus. Come take a walk with me!

Zinnias in Stan Hywet's Cutting Garden

I think a row of these electric orange zinnias next to some purple Russian sage (Perovskia) would be quite exciting for the summer months!

The summer flowers in the Cutting garden were all in bloom for my visit to Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens in Akron, Ohio.

Visit to Stan Hywet in Akron, Ohio ~ The Waterlily Pool

Waterlily pool at Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens

My husband and I just returned from a wonderful weekend away in nearby Akron, Ohio. We visited Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens which is considered "one of the finest examples of Tudor Revival architecture in America" (ref). The Hall was patterned after Ockwell’s Manor in Berkshire, Compton Wynyates in Warwickshire and Haddon Hall in Derbyshire by architect Charles S. Schneider.

Gardening in Pennsylvania ~ GBBD August 2013

Pink Anemone japonica, Spirea 'Goldflame', red Canna 'King Humbert' and white Cosmos fill the Front Walk garden this week.

Welcome to August in Pennsylvania! We have quite a few flowers this month since the Japanese anemones and meadow rues have started their long season of bloom and the black-eyed Susans are prettying the curb. Come take a walk around!

Containers for July

The foliage of this begonia will make a beautiful pot arrangement for the whole summer long.

There are so many pots around our house this summer: hanging baskets on the porch, herbs by the potager, and flowers on the steps. Even while our summer days are full of going to the pool, the library, the park, etc., these hold their own and keep things looking pretty without much besides a good mulching at the beginning of the season and an occasional watering (every few weeks here with our current rain level). Here are a few of my favorites that are new for this year!

Gardening in Pennsylvania ~ October GBBD 2012

Perennial mum Dendranthema 'Sheffield Pink' and double purple Aster hybrida 'Peter III'.

Welcome to October at Gilmore Gardens in Pennsylvania! 

Everywhere in our area we are seeing the colors of autumn. The trees are in the middle of their foliage change - the earlier ones having dropped most of their leaves and the later ones still holding on to their green. The asters are out in full force, the milkweeds pods are just about ripe and the first nips of frost have just come this past weekend. Some of the annual flowers did not take kindly to the cold, but others have survived to bloom a bit longer. Hope you enjoy your look around our tiny town garden!

Asters and pumpkins add color to the sunny Driveway Garden this fall.

The Shade Path Garden in Early October

The Shade Path Garden in the first week of October.

October is here and has brought some chilly temperatures in Pennsylvania. It seemed to come on us all at once this year. It was quite warm and rainy, but not truly cold until this week which makes it feel a bit shocking, though we all knew it was coming. We have missed a true frost twice in the last couple evenings. Some tender leaves are browned around their edges, but most of the plants are still standing tall. Very soon the annuals will greet the morning as a puddle of mush and will need to be removed post-haste.

Phipps Conservatory at Summer's End

Tropical walk along the front of Phipps Conservatory with a view toward the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh.

Last week, I was able to attend a garden design seminar with guest speaker Gordon Hayward at Phipps Conservatory. The first day was lecture in the Phipps Botany Hall, and the second day was a smaller setting at the nearby Phipps Garden Center.

I hope to share more of my favorite key points from Mr Hayward lectures soon. For today though, here are a few summery photos I snapped on the way around Phipps on the first day. Happy Labor Day!

Gardening in Pennsylvania ~ August GBBD 2012

Sedum 'Autumn Joy' and Mandevilla 'Pretty Pink' in PA zone 5 for August.

Welcome to August in my Pennsylvania, zone 5 garden! It is not what I had hoped that it would be, but the garden is perking up after having some much needed rain in the past two weeks. I took these photos last night after another rain came.

Large-flowered hardy hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos 'Pink Elephant') in our Driveway Garden is blooming away this month.

More in the Driveway Garden: Hibiscus 'Pink Elephant',white Miscanthus 'Dixieland',  a tall blue Buddleia and Agastache foeniculum 'Golden Jubilee'. The ground cover in front here is Sedum 'Acre' which is a much used cover plant in our gardens.

Gardening in Pennsylvania ~ GBBD July 2012

Lavender and purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) in the Driveway Garden for July

Welcome to Pennsylvania in July! It has been a hot dry summer here this year, as it has been in most of the US. My gardens have had very little supplementary watering this season. Everything was looking tired around the edges until we had a garden clean-up this past weekend.

Fall Gardening Task #4: Save the Cosmos!

Somehow I cannot keep myself from running around trying to save every little flower that still has life from the impending frost.

My garage is stuffed with potted ferns, flats of begonias, a few choice impatients and a couple of large fushias.  And in the house, we have some bouquets for the weekend!

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day ~ October 2011

Dahlia 'Peaches 'n Cream'

Some floriferous views from Gilmore Gardens!
Welcome to our Pennsylvania, USA garden (hardiness zone 5). We are fortunate not to have had our first frost yet this month. Sometimes the snow flies on October 1st! Most of the plantings are similar to those from September, but the asters are not to be missed this month. And my favorite are on the Shade Path garden, which lives between our home and the sidewalk...
 
The Shade Path:

Begonia 'Big Rex', white-flowered native aster (Doellingeria umbellata) and Digitalis grandiflora.

Our Shade Path is still stuffed with flowers. I know that its days are numbered, so I am trying to soak up the color so that it will last me until March. The native flat-topped aster (Doellingeria umbellata) floats like a cloud over the rest of the pink and yellow planting. The yellow perennial foxgloves (Digitalis grandiflora) have been blooming strong since I first sighted them in September (see their first bloom in June).

Sedum 'Frosty Morn' under Northern Sea Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium).

Dark-leaved annual begonias with chartreuse Sedum 'Acre' and under hung by the white flat-topped aster.

Evening light through the trellises around the Circle Lawn, at the end of the Shade Path.

Cherry Corner & the Front Walk:

Reds and purples have been the themes in the annual plantings this year for these gardens in front of the house.

Dahlia 'Heat Wave' has over three dozen blooms in the Front Walk this weekend.

Canna 'King Humbert' and Dahlia 'Heat Wave' with pink cosmos at their feet.

Canna 'King Humbert' in the October morning light.

Catmint (Nepeta 'Walker's Low') re-blooming under the dahlias. (See it in June.)

The Hill Garden:

View of the Hill Garden from the driveway.

Our Hill Garden gets the "best transformation" award (see it before). I so enjoy walking all the way around it and appreciating how the plantings have filled in the past three years. The bushes have more substance, as well as the perennials I have divided and seeded here. It is amazing to remember that it all came from about a dozen pots!

Rosa 'The Fairy' is pop pink in front of Sedum 'Acre'. Last year it bloomed for Thanksgiving in the snow (see it here).

Purple coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) that I seeded here, in front of Sedum 'Autumn Joy' and Canna 'King Humbert'.

Another shot of the pink tapestry on the Hill. Purple barberry bushes behind Rosa 'The Fairy'.

Seed heads of Allium tuberosum leaning over the lamb's ears, Sedum 'Autumn Joy' and barberry bushes.

Stachys byzantina, Sedum 'Autumn Joy', purple barberry, Canna 'King Humbert'.

My giant patch of lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina) all came from one pot just two years ago. It is happy here... very well drained and sunny.

The Driveway Garden:

A brilliant yellow backdrop for the Driveway Garden.

I could not resist adding a foliage photo for this garden. All of the mature maples in our back yard turn a brilliant yellow in October, which makes the perfect setting for the flowers that are blooming.

Miscanthus 'Dixieland' in front of purple Aster 'Peter III'

Loving my last grass purchase! I can't appreciate enough the lightness added to this boarder by the white variegation of Miscanthus 'Dixieland'... especially in contrast to the vibrant purple of Aster hybrida 'Peter III'.

Dahlia 'Peaches 'n Cream' soaring over the Driveway Garden.

We have one more dahlia in the gardens this year, Dahlia 'Peaches 'n Cream'. My girls prefer calling it the "candy corn flower", as the color graduation on its petals matches that of the beloved fall candy. (The front of this flower can be seen in the opening photo for this post.)

Pumpkins brightening our walk to the car.

Thank you for joining us for the October garden walk!
We are really happy with the garden this fall and hope that you have enjoyed it too!

A big THANKS to Carol at May Dreams for hosting GBBD! Visit her to see more flowers from gardens around the world!

If you are interested in keeping up with Gilmore Gardens at Wife, Mother, Gardener, just take a look at the right-hand column. 
You can sign up for emailed posts by entering your address (in the white box under "Get updates by Email"), follow with Google Followers or grab the RSS feed at the top by the header. 
 

Fall Equinox

Happy first day of fall!

The first of the vibrant leaves lying on the Ajuga reptans

The back fence: mostly green with hints of autumn

The Shade Path: all aglow for the start of autumn with asters, foxgloves and begonias

Dahlia 'Heat Wave'

Like Tulip 'Red Shine' for the September garden, Dahlia 'Heat Wave' can be seen from a mile away... or at least all the way from the far stop sign across from our house.

Dahlia 'Heat Wave' with Canna 'King Humbert'; both float above the young pink Japanese Anemones.

 They are balanced by the deep red edges of Canna 'King Humbert' in our Front Walk. Red needs something to tie it down to the landscape a bit, in my opinion.

Just after a light autumn rain.

Dahlia 'Heat Wave' with Canna 'King Humbert' and Spirea 'Goldflame'.

 They began flowering in August (see GBBD August 2011) but are really driving strong through September.

 For more on their situation in the Front Walk at Gilmore Gardens, read the Garden Blogger's Bloom Day post for September 2011.

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day ~ September 2011

A finishing view from the end of our wrap-around garden walk.

Welcome to early fall at Gilmore Gardens!

For the month of September, I have decided to walk you through the path that I take each morning alone and many evenings with my hubby (read more in my autumn foxglove post). For us, the garden tour begins at the gate, which is rather a romantic/poetic start.

The Shade Path

The bloom in the shade garden is representative of the entire garden this month: like August but better! 
We still have all of the cool green, blue and white-edged foliage to look at and ribbons of annual color, but it also has some nice patches of perennial foxgloves (Digitalis grandiflora) and the toad lily (Tricyrtis 'Blue Wonder') is in bloom.

Left side of Shade Path

I am very happy with the hot pink impatients I chose for the Shade Path this year. It really packs more of a punch, especially at a distance or drive-by, than the pastel shades that I used last year (see Sept 2010).

 With so many natural disasters going on in the weather this month, I find myself more thankful than usual at we have made it into September without much incident... excepting the quarter sized hail that beat-up the hosta and cannas a few weeks ago. Our garden did not sustain as much damage as others in town, though I have removed armloads of broad leaves this month.

Toad lily (Tricyrtis 'Blue Wonder'). It's common name comes from the way each the flowers seem to sit on each leaf along the stem, like little frogs on their lily pads. Do toads ever sit on lily pads?

Layered plantings add mystery and depth

I acquired a sun-stressed baby oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) a month ago. Here on the outside edge of the Shade Path, it looks mesmerizing surrounded by the froth of native aster (Doellingeria unbellata).

I am totally in love with the white aster in the shade garden. Weak in the knees. 
It seeded itself here a few years ago, and noticing that it looked like an aster shoot, I decided to give it the Chelsea chop like my other asters and see what happened. It makes the most beautiful froth above the green mounds. Stay tuned for its full bloom this year.
(Note the hail damage in the lower right corner above. So sad. Like slugs on drugs.)

The Circle Lawn

When approaching the Circle Lawn, you might want to take a moment to notice the great color echo from the foxgloves on the Shade Path to the bright yellow grass, Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola', on the opposite side of the circle.

The colorful left side of the Circle Lawn.

Then notice that this same Japanese forest grass is planted on both "corners" where the path meets the circle, and also on a third corner to the right (below).

The green right side of the Circle Lawn.

This garden area is a cacophony of colors. I am rather uncomfortable with it at present, but there are a lot of plants waiting to mature; that alone will create more cohesion next year.

One combination I love, though it is rather pushing the variegated plant limit: Sedum 'Frosty Morn' and Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola').

A look back at the Circle Lawn.

Cherry Corner

The inside of this corner garden has the tough job of being a transition point that should move us on to the next expanse, the Front Walk. I tried to keep the planting simple, yet provide for some succession (which I talked about in GBBD August).

Inside of Cherry Corner

Never too much Sedum 'Autumn Joy' for me. They are wonderful in their green state, and the blush tells me fall is here.

Transition to the Front Walk

The Front Walk

View down the length of the Front Walk from under the weeping cherry tree ("Do not mind me, neighbors").

This garden is much closer this year to what dream it could be. The pink Japanese anemones are gaining bulk, now two years old. Pink cosmos sneak in with their dissected foliage at the lower level. Dahlia 'Heat Wave' and Canna 'King Humbert' tower over the rest, giving it a focal point and some punch.

Dahlia 'Heat Wave'

Dahlia 'Heat Wave' and Canna 'King Humbert'

A peak down the the sidewalk complete with the lazy gardener's wheel barrow.

The Hill Garden

The less-often-seen inner edge of the Hill Garden. The garlic chive, Allium tuberosum, has been putting on quite a show. It adds some restful white the all of the lively red this season.

 Planting layers have been key to creating succession in our relatively small boarders. Here, the white allium falls over Sedum 'Autumn Joy', which leans on the curved hedge of purple barberry (Berberis thunbergii; a known invasive), which helps support the crown on flowers at the top.

The crown of the Hill: Echinacea purpurea and Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

Also: Canna 'King Humbert' and  Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Little Spire'

Here we begin rounding the corner... and a quick look back at the Front Walk.

Looping the Hill garden, we can make our way to see one of the best surprises of September...

Roses! I love them. Rosa 'The Fairy' keeps going until well into November.

Like June again. wonderful.

Front Woodland

 This is a good moment for a few glances at the front curb planting. It is mostly green this month, with a few shots of color.

Lily turf (Liriope muscari)

Liriope muscari, or lily turf, provides strappy foliage from late spring and grape hyacinth like spikes in the early fall. The bees like it too!

Liriope muscari 'Monroe White' in its first season.

At the far corner, I just added some artemesia to bring out the L. 'Monroe White'.

Liriope muscari 'Variegata'

Front Walk - lower view

View of the front steps and Front Walk

 The beauty of having a multi-sided garden is enjoying it! It is rather a challenge at moments to make it work together, but very worth the effort.

 I like this annual planting even more now that these self-seeded verbenas popped up from last years planting. The RHS plantfinder tells me this is probably Verbena 'Homestead Purple', a shorter cousin of Verbena bonariensis.

Verbena 'Homestead Purple'

The catmint, Nepeta 'Walker's Low', is blooming again after its summer haircut, giving a nice mounded front edge to this whole boarder.

More fruit of grueling, hot summer pruning: the rebloom of Spirea 'Goldflame'.

Dahlia, Canna, anemone and Spirea 'Goldflame'.  Verbena 'Homestead Purple' in the background.

Circle Lawn: lower view

More walking, less talking.

Cherry Corner - lower view

 The daylily foliage has filled in quite a lot in the past month. (Read more about pruning daylilies.)

View across Cherry Corner.

 More layers: Annuals tucked in amongst Heuchra 'Palace Purple', artemesia, daylilies (Hemerocallis hyb.) and white-edged variegated loosestrife.

Shade Path - lower view

And finally (whew!) we arrive at the other gate... almost. Take just a moment to look and enjoy the Shade Path again with a better view of the autumn blooming foxgloves (Digitalis grandiflora).

Asters waiting to pop.

That lovely aster again (Doellingeria umbellata).

 Notice the white color echo to the hosta across the path.  So nice.

That does it for the front yard! 
Thanks for joining us for a thorough walk around the place.
Time for some tea and cake. 

A big Thank You! to Carol at May Dreams for hosting GBBD!